Hillphoenix Unveils CO₂ Condensing Unit for Store Cabinets and Cold Rooms, One of the First in North America

Hillphoenix, part of Dover Food Retail and Dover, and the leading provider of transcritical CO₂ refrigeration in North America, announced on February 3 the addition of a transcritical CO₂ (R744) condensing unit to its portfolio of CO₂ products.

The new system – dubbed the CO₂One single-condensing unit – is one of the first CO₂ condensing units designed for complete food retail stores in North America. Previously, commercial CO₂ condensing units in North America have been aimed at cold rooms in stores, but not display cabinets, which have been served by CO₂ rack systems. By contrast, CO₂ condensing units have been widely used for complete retail stores in Japan and to a growing degree in Europe for many years.

“The addition of the CO₂One condensing unit to our product line underscores our commitment to delivering products that run on all-natural refrigerants and offering our customers more environmentally friendly alternatives for their businesses,” said Subodh Sharma, Director of Systems Product Management at Hillphoenix, in a statement.

The CO₂One is available in two configurations: a single condensing unit and split system; the split system includes a condensing unit, controller and  unit cooler (evaporator) for a walk-in cooler or freezer. Both configurations come with low- and medium-temperature options.

The new condensing unit is meant to “support future-focused businesses by running on natural refrigerants and providing a smaller footprint and refrigerant charge,” said Hillphoenix, adding that its design “works with smaller footprint stores, walk-in cooler/freezers, phased remodels as well as stores that use a distributed refrigeration architecture.”  

Hillphoenix sees the CO₂ condensing unit being used to support an additional case lineup or walk-in cooler/freezer, and as a direct replacement for HFC single-condensing units. In addition, CO₂One can be located closer to loads, which means less piping and wiring in the field and reduced potential for leaks, the company noted.

Variable-speed compression

The CO₂One single-condensing system uses variable-speed compression to match load demand, with an onboard controller to manage the high-side operation of the condensing unit. It is rated for outdoor installation.

Hillphoenix advises on its website that the CO₂One should be used with Hillphoenix-supplied cases or unit coolers. These cases and unit coolers come equipped with 60bar (870.2psi)-rated evaporators, electronic expansion valves and the necessary controls for use with CO₂. “Any customer supplied cases or units must, at a minimum, have the above features and capabilities,” the company said.

Hillphoenix’s other transcritical CO₂ systems include the Advansor, AdvansorFlex and AdvansorFlex-Mini racks.

Last July, Hillphoenix reported having over 700 installations of transcritical CO₂ systems (and more than 1,100 total CO₂ installations, including transcritical, cascade and secondary), making it the leading provider of transcritical CO₂ refrigeration systems in North America.

“The addition of the CO₂One condensing unit to our product line underscores our commitment to delivering products that run on all-natural refrigerants.”

Subodh Sharma, Hillphoenix

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